Family Properties: Race, Real Estate, and the Exploitation of Black Urban America by Beryl Satter

Beryl Satter's account of the discriminatory housing practices confronted by African Americans may rank as “the most important book” ever to be published on “the black freedom struggle” in Northern citi

(Metropolitan, 495 pages, $30)

It’s no mystery how America’s black urban slums came to be, says historian Beryl Satter. A half-century ago, she says, the typical African-American couple hoping to buy a home confronted a system that was seemingly engineered to destroy family and community. Unlike other Americans, blacks couldn’t borrow from a bank because the Federal Housing Administration would not provide mortgage insurance for homes in neighborhoods where even a handful of blacks lived. Speculators filled the vacuum in those areas, selling buildings at inflated prices to black buyers willing to sign onerous contracts. Exorbitant fees were often tacked on, and a single late payment was grounds for instant eviction. To hang on, families rented out parts of their homes and themselves became exploitative landlords.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us